Manchester United’s under-23 side earned an impressive win over West Ham at the weekend to move up the table.
West Ham beat United 6-0 in the previous meeting between the two teams in a one-sided encounter best put down to a freak result in terms of how heavy it was.
At Leigh Village on Saturday, United exacted some revenge by beating the second placed Hammers to win 3-1.
Shola Shoretire was the star, producing two outstanding assists which scythed the West Ham defence open, the first of which was scored by D’Mani Mellor.
Mellor grabbed another to restore United’s lead after a West Ham equaliser, capitalising on an assist from right-back Charlie Wellens.
The second recipient of Shoretire’s creativity was winger Connor Stanley, making his first Manchester United appearance in 12 months.
Back with a bang
Stanley, 20, last played for United’s under-23 team on February 12 last year as a substitute in a win over Arsenal.
He since was loaned out to US second tier side Atlanta United 2 where he made 27 appearances in the USL Championship, scoring once and providing three assists.
Stanley returned to United after the loan expired at the end of last year, where he remains until his contract expires in the summer.
He made his comeback in spectaclar style at the weekend, coming on for the final 13 minutes and scoring after Shoretire played him through. Understandably he was delighted.
Stanley’s teammates were thrilled for him too, with recent first team debutants Charlie Savage and Zidane Iqbal among several who reached out to congratulate him.
This was Stanley’s first goal at either under-18 or under-23 level for Manchester United.
The likelihood is Stanley will move on when his contract expires. At 20, too much time has expired for him to realistically target United’s first teams.
Nonetheless he could end the campaign with a strong run for the under-23s and open up his options in the process.
Saturday’s goal will give his confidence a much needed boost and sets him up to kick on.
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